Eveybody knows Italia for its dolce vita : good people, nice landscape, awesome food. But it is also a wonderfull place for riding, famous in the whole word especially thanks to EWS round. Aurélien (photographer & moviemaker) and I (rider) leaved our sweet Alsace (East of France) last February in order to meet Manuel Ducci from Life Cycle Team, professionnal enduro racer, globetrotter all around the world.

It was the occasion to share some goods moments with him and enjoy crazy lines to San Remo (Liguria), more or less the Manuel’s headquarter we can say !

I’ve been back in Italy for just over a day after spending the last two weeks traveling and competing in Colorado and Canada. The days have been incredible and full of strong emotions. Unfortunately as everyone knows by now, during the American round in Crusted Butte, there was a tragic accident that claimed the life of a biker, who was participating just like all of us. There are no words to express how much sadness and sorrow I felt and still feel, Will was doing what we all love to do every weekend, riding his bike down the trails at full speed. We are all aware of the risks we take in this sport, but somehow we always try to forget about it and put it out of our minds, because otherwise it would be difficult to get on a bike, to enjoy ourselves and perform at our best, hearing the noise of ground beneath our wheels, forgetting our fears.

When these things happen, everything is amplified and very real, and in no time, especially when you’re away from home and your family, you realize how fragile we are and that it takes very little to get hurt. You start to think about how important it is to try to take those little moments during hectic days, to make life sweeter, to exchange a hug, to say “I love you”, spending time with loved ones, laugh, talk or be just being together without saying anything, sharing dreams, and always smiling!

It’s been a tough week and I didn’t stop to talk about the race because I don’t think there’s much I can add. Leaving behind the spectacular sunset gold of Colorado, we moved across to Canada.

Turning the page, but talking about dreams, I cannot even begin to describe Whistler, that magical place where every biker dreams to go and spend their holidays, with endless trails in fantastic scenery, and forests that are like something from a fairytale!

After the seemingly endless race last year, we were all a bit scared about what we could expect from the Crankworx organization this year, fortunately, learning from their mistakes they organized a spectacular race, with tracks that were always very technical but with less demanding transfers, where they made use of the the ski lifts and generous transfer times.

I really liked the tracks, they were very complete as enduro stages, with endless roots, steep sections, fast sections and sections where you could recover, they were certainly the most physical tracks we found this year.

After practice and after finding a little confidence on the track that had now reached a state of perfect grip, the rain came, and with it came all the fears and anxieties about how we would find the way on race day.

In the morning when I woke up and looked out it was all wet, it had rained all night, my first thought was “Why can’t I just go back to sleep?” but after a while I got up, got ready, and went to fight against the slimy roots, sadly they won, there were just too many!

The race didn’t start in the right way, the first two stages – the most technical – proved really difficult. My lack of confidence from the conditions and perhaps also for the many fears I had in my head led to me not riding confidently, making a lot of mistakes and a few slides, fortunately by the third stage I started over to get over my nerves, enjoying the transfers with the other girls, continuing the day, so I finished my race with a big smile and the satisfaction of completing another challenging race.

Manu unfortunately failed to finish the race, because a bump during practice, fortunately nothing serious but he preferred not to worsen the situation, given the conditions of the race.

]]>http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/08/team-life-cycle-in-whistler-and-crested-butte/feed/0Valentina’s perspective at the EWS round #4!http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/07/valentinas-perspective-at-the-ews-round-4/
http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/07/valentinas-perspective-at-the-ews-round-4/#commentsTue, 28 Jul 2015 07:53:45 +0000Ufficio Stampahttp://www.life-cycle.eu/?p=1903The season is going great, there’s been some ups and downs, but we know that’s part of the game and after months of races in various different series, we’ve now reached heart of the season. A lot of energy has already been spent and lots more will be spent before the end of the year, the level of the EWS progresses more & more, and the challenges that an enduro rider faces between one race and the other are varied, so managing yourself and your health is a very important factor that cannot be overlooked. This past weekend all riders who took part in the race for the Samoens round of the World Series faced one of the toughest tests of year, yet one of the simplest in terms of format.

After attending various types of competitions with different formats, I think that perhaps the best solution is French, for many reasons their format is one of the most challenging on a technical level but one of the most practical in many ways.

I would begin by mentioning the expenditure of energy, although it is a very physical race that includes free practice and qualifying over a period of two days of competition, it is still less of a commitment both in energy terms and economic outlay than other Series, dictated by the fact that practice in the days prior to the event is prohibited and then all your energy is concentrated on the race weekend – more so than any other format, whether European, American or New Zealand, all of which require riders to practice as early as Wednesday or Thursday, making sure that the physical effort required is based on 4/5 very intense days, including the route of the race weekend.

Places that do not have chairlifts have limitations in the sense it is difficult to propose a format similar to the French but in this case, however, the races would focus on a single practice day on Saturday and the race on Sunday, reducing the practice & transfer times and consequently also the costs for both pro and amateur teams.

For this event the tracks chosen for the race were very complete and very physical, with almost 70km between free practice and special stages, with a total of 7,200m of altitude, with steep sections at the limit of rideability alternating continuously with sections where you had to keep the gas truly open. Something unique about the practice runs in the French format is that the rules do not allow you to stop on the track and try the sections but force you to continue without stopping.

It was hard to stay off the brakes at first, but it’s also true that with these rules you learn much faster, because you don’t have the ability to put off trying a section until later, you do it or you don’t do it, and without the opportunity to meet with anyone else on track, you have to find the best line there and then, with only with yourself and the clock!

After more than a month of scorching heat and dusty trails, a summer storm kicked off the start of the race, the trial run of the place in dry conditions, and the race day was wet and slippery as soap, the tracks had completely changed, becoming a scene of numerous falls and mechanical problems, fortunately after a brief period of madness, the sun was shining again, fortunately for many points in the following stages, especially the steepest, otherwise I do not think that they would be ridable.

]]>http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/07/valentinas-perspective-at-the-ews-round-4/feed/0Italian cup, La Thuile round #4.http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/07/italian-cup-la-thuile-round-4/
http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/07/italian-cup-la-thuile-round-4/#commentsTue, 28 Jul 2015 07:37:42 +0000Ufficio Stampahttp://www.life-cycle.eu/?p=1896Last weekend was the fourth leg of the Italian Cup in La Thuile, famous for its mountain trails and natural tracks characterized by steep gradients that lend themselves perfectly to a high level enduro race, the same location hosted one of the most beautiful rounds of the Enduro World Series last year.

The race was held over two days, with six special stages, all very long and physical, characterized by unbelievable dust, unlike last year where riders faced temperatures approaching freezing. On this occasion the riders were lucky, with very great weather conditions that meant everyone enjoyed more sun and summer conditions.

The Life Cycle team riders have always loved the trails of La Thuile, so they decided to spend a few more days there to train and practice both on the race tracks and the new trails of the bike park. Because of drought conditions, the tracks proved treacherous, despite Manuel and Valentina being used to training in very dry and dusty conditions back home in Sanremo.

The standard of participants in this event was very high, thanks to its geographical location making it convenient for many athletes from different countries and the next round of the EWS being in Samoens, only 2 hours from La Thuile. Our athletes were lucky to be able to compare themselves with many top riders from around the world.

Manuel finished in twelfth place overall with a puncture in one of the longer stages and Valentina ended her race with a good seventh place, behind the foreign riders, making her first among the Italian athletes.

Manuel:

I enjoy it here in La Thuile more each time, the scenery and the countless number of tracks, they bring me a feeling so positive that I would quite happily stop and session every turn! I am pleased at how the race went, I feel more motivated and determined to regain my form. Coming back from injury, I suffered a bit with the length of the trails, and found myself failing to maintain the initial rhythm that I was trying to force myself into at the beginning of the special stages, but it was a great workout for the next EWS in France.

Valentina:

I think that La Thuile is my favorite place to ride my Enduro bike, I have a real weakness for the steep tracks and natural trails, and here there is no shortage of them!
I really enjoyed both practice and the race, and I look forward to returning already. I’m satisfied with my performance, although I made a few mistakes, I had a good feeling for the whole two days of competition, it was nice to see so many girls compete, there seem to be more and more of us every time!

The next event for the team will be in Samoens, France for the fourth round of the Enduro World Series.

]]>http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/07/italian-cup-la-thuile-round-4/feed/0Relentless!http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/06/relentless/
http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/06/relentless/#commentsSat, 13 Jun 2015 09:57:00 +0000Ufficio Stampahttp://www.life-cycle.eu/?p=1887For Manuel and Valentina the last 10 days have been very challenging, after the second round of the EWS in dusty Ireland, it was time to pack up and travel to face a totally different scenario, landing in a cold and wet Scotland, where the weather certainly didn’t make things simple for the riders who came to race. It was amazing to enjoy all four seasons in just a few days in the small town of Peebles where the third round of the EWS was held.

Once again, the Tweedlove team showed excellent organizational skills to put on a fantastic event, and again succeeded despite the difficult weather to give us two days of really exciting competition.

Three days of practice, two race days with 8 stages, which had to be reduced to six because of the arrival of very strong winds on Sunday. For guys like Manuel and Valentina, used to heading out on the hot trails of Liguria, the days of practice seemed endless day and cold, at the end of the 5 days, they’d ridden over 200km on incredible trails in beautiful Scottish countryside.

Valentina had a mechanical problem on the first day of competition that affected her race, and on the second day she had to fight in the mud to try to make up some places, but this mud was so sticky so that in some parts of the course it literally blocked the tracks and clogged up bikes! Vale finished well in 22nd position in her third EWS race this season, giving her a current world ranking of 16th.

Unfortunately for Manuel, it was an even more challenging race – coming back from injury has made it difficult to find the right feeling in such tough conditions. On the second day, in the much muddier conditions, he suffered a mechanical problem that forced him to retire, even so, it was still a great workout for the races to come.

Valentina:

These 5 days were really long and hard, unfortunately I had a mechanical problem in the race, in practice I had a good feeling and I enjoyed it a lot, but as we know anything can happen in the races, let’s hope it will be better in the next race! It was a good workout because coming from Sanremo where there’s no mud meant I was able to gain experience racing on very different types of trails, and I am very happy that finally Manu and I are back riding together!

Manuel:

The days in Scotland were a great workout where I had the chance to spend plenty of time on my bike – I really suffered while the injury kept me out of contention for some time and I feel that I lack confidence with the bike in difficult situations. I know that the road is still long, but I’m working hard to come back stronger than before. During the two days of competition I had ups and downs, unfortunately on the second day I had a mechanical problem which forced me to retire. I like the Scottish round a lot but I have still not managed to settle the score with her, see you next year Scotland!!! Emoticon wink

]]>http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/06/relentless/feed/0The right trails to start again!http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/05/the-right-trails-to-start-again/
http://www.life-cycle.eu/2015/05/the-right-trails-to-start-again/#commentsThu, 28 May 2015 21:27:16 +0000Ufficio Stampahttp://www.life-cycle.eu/?p=1880Finally the team is back racing together after Manuel’s injury that kept him away from the start line for six weeks, this time the guys travelled to discover Ireland for the second round of the Enduro World Series.

An unexpected sunny weekend was the setting for an exciting race on the hills of Wicklow, over a course of nearly 50 km, 7 special stages and 1,800m in altitude in one day. The trails were fun but very technical, and an incredible number of spectators flocked to the event, supporting each athlete with a unique enthusiasm!
A perfect organizational machine managed the Irish round, taking great care of every single detail throughout the weekend.
Manuel took part to the race, he finished with an 80th place, managing to maintain a good points score for the series general classification.Valentina ended her race in 22nd, having had a couple of crashes and making a few wrong choices on the setup of the bike.

Manuel:
Honestly when we left home I did not think I would be putting a number board on the handlebars, but testing in the days before the race, I was able to make it all together thanks to the really fun trails and the fact that it did not rain for the entire event.
I am very happy to have finished the race, 80th is not a position I aspire to, but in this case and coming back from injury, it is a good starting point. Certainly Scotland it will be more challenging, but I’m feeling recharged and refocused! Now I feel better and I know I can go back to work hard to get back in shape.

Valentina:It was a really long race, almost seven hours without a break, with short transfers but very intense stages. For me it was a day of ups and downs and definitely could have gone better, but because of a few crashes and a bad decision on the setup of the bike, I ended up just outside the top twenty. The beauty of racing though is that every time you learn something new and important to be able to keep and put into practice in the next race, so I’m super motivated to do well in Scotland.

Now a very short break after the race and tomorrow practice begins in Peebles in Scotland, ready for the third round of Enduro World Series this weekend!